Tie adzing machine



Oct. 10, 1933. J. H. MANSFIELD TIE ADZING MACHINE Filed Nov. 16, 1932 T fill? Patented Oct. 10, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TIE ADZING MACHINE poration of Illinois Application November 16, 1932 Serial No. 642,924

8 Claims. (Cl. 144133) This invention relates to wood adzing or gaining machines and is particularly concerned with a machine for adzing railway ties to provide seats for the rail plates.

A machine of this character is disclosed in patent to Purdy and Edwards 1,141,887 embodying mechanism for adjustably supporting the ties so that thegains made therein will be of a substantially uniform depth regardless of irregularities in the shape and size of the ties. In that machine, the cradles supporting the tie serve to actuate indicators showing the degree of irregularity, and manually operated mechanism was provided to raise and lower the cradles with respect to the cutters so that a gain of the desired depth would be produced. In a later patent to Purdy and Mansfield 1,159,795 another machine is illustrated in which the cradles automatically position themselves to produce gains or" the desired depth without any control or supervision on the part of the operator. The present invention is in the nature of a combination manually adjustable and automatically controlled machine of the kind mentioned, designed with the object of permiting the operator to control the positioning of the cradles with. respect to the cutters differentlyfor different classes of ties. Thus, for example, ties that are sawed to size or slabbed to size are fairly regular buthewn ties are more apt to run irregular. In accordance with the present invention, the operator can adjust the machine according to the ties being adzed so as to avoid the condition of making gains too deep in ties that are fairly regular or making gains that are not deep enough in ties that are so irregular that a shallow gain would form a seat of a fraction of the required width, or not deep enough to penetrate the bark, or roughly hewn parts of certain ties.

Other objects of the invention will appear from the following description in which reference is made to the accompanying drawing, wherein Figure 1 is a cross-section in a vertical plane through one side of a tie adzing machine embodying my invention, the middle of the machine being indicated by a dot and dash line, it being understood that the other side of the machineis a counter-part of that illustrated, and

Fig. 2 is a view in a plane at right angles to Figure 1, partly in section on the aforesaid dot and dash line marked 2-2.

.The same reference numeralsare appliedto corresponding parts in the two views.

The numeral 3 is applied to one of the side standards of the machine-.on which brackets 4 are mounted for the support of an endless chain conveyor 5 for feeding the ties through the machine. Dogs 6 are provided on the chains to engage the tie from behind and thus feed it positively toward the two cutters, one of which is indicated diagrammatically at '7. There are, of course, two chain conveyors, one oneach side of the machine operating lengthwise thereof, and alongside each chain is a cradle or tie support 8 associated with one of the cutters 7. The ties to be gained are supported during their initial travel in the machine upon the conveyors until they reach the cradles when they ride up the inclined ends 9 on the side bars 10 of the cradles, whereby to be supported by the cradles in the travel past the cutters. The dogs 6, meanwhile, continue to serve the purpose of positively feeding the tie, and any suitable means is provided to press the ties yieldingly down upon the cradles and in cooperative relation with the cutters, as shown in patentv No. 1,159,795. 'The cradles, as will now be described, are tilted according to the shape of the tie, and the tilting automatically controls the elevation of the cradles during the cutting of the gains so that gains of the required depth will be produced, the elevation of the cradles being furthermore under manual control so as to permit variation in the depth of the cuts accordingly as it may be necessary or desirable.

I shall first take up the automatic phase of the mechanism. It will be observed that the cradle is supported on trunnions 11 at its opposite ends for tilting movement about a horizontal longitudinal axis preferably about midway between the side rails 10 of the cradle. The trunnions are provided on plungers 12 slidably'received in vertical bearings 13 on the frame of the machine. The lower ends of the plungers 12 have abutment with tappets 14 provided on tappet arms 15 and 15, mounted on a shaft 16 so as to rock together from a retracted lower position to a raised operative position; The extent to which the arms 15 and 15 are movable downwardly is limited by an adjustable set screw 1'7 on the arm 15 arranged to come into abutment with a stop 18 on the frame of the machine. The arms 15 are arranged to be raised so as to lift the cradle by means of the plungers 12. The extent to which the cradle will be lifted depends upon the position of a toothed arcuate segment 19 mounted on the arm 15 for sliding movement lengthwise in the'T-slot The segment is shiftable by .means of alink .20 operated by a lever .21 pivoted at 221011. a :part of the machine frame. The lever 21 is operated by another link 23 pivoted as at 24;, to the lever near the pivot point thereof. An arm 25, fixed as at 26, to the cradle 8 so as to oscillate with it, is pivotally connected as at 2? to the other end of the link 23. In that way, it is apparent that as the cradle .is tilted in either direction on its trunnions the segment 19 will be slid lengthwise of the arm 15, in either direction from a mid-point, depending upon the direction the cradle is tilted. The shifting of the segment is manifestly automatic and,

as will soon appear, she crown of the toothed face is the factor which determines how far the cradle will be lifted when the arm 15 is raised. The segment 19 is arranged to be engaged by "a set screw 28 adiustably mounted on the arm 29 fixed on and oscillating with the shaft 30. Assuming that the shaft 33 is moved through a predetermined angularity and that at the beginning of the movement the screw has certain clearance withrespect to the toothed face of the ment, it should be clear that the cradle 8 will be raised the maximum distance if thev screw 23 is disposed for engagement with the midpoint of the segment 19, and that the cradle will not be raised as high if the segment 13 has been shifted in either direction so as to cause the screw 28 to cooperate with a point to either side of the middle. The parts are shown in Figure l with the cradle raised and if one were to assume the segment 19 shiftedto the right or left from the la v position indicated it is clear how that would af-.

feet the elevation of the cradle. Now, it is to be observed that mention was made of a certain clearance existing between the segment 19 and the set screw 28 when the arm 15 is in lowered retracted position and the arm 29 is in a position about to commence its cradle lifting movement. That clearance is varied manifestly by the extent to which the segment 19 is shifted automatically one way or the other. I also contemplate the provision of manually operated means for advancing or retracting the arm 29 with respect to the arm 15, whereby to further vary the clearance between the screw 23 and segment 19. The manual adjustment will be described immediately, and in passing it should be observed that the shaft 30 extends crosswise of the machine for the operation simultaneously of two arms 29, the one for the cradle shown and the other for the cradleon the other side of the machine. A yoke 31 is fixed to the shaft 30 at a, point between the two cradles and has a link 32 pivotally connected to the upper end thereof by a means indicated generally by the numeral 33. The link 32 is given back and forth movement once in each complete revolution of the cam disc 34 so as to rock the shaft 30 and accordingly oscillate the arms 29. The cam 34 has a follower Ski-operating in its cam groove 36, and the follower 35 is mounted on a lever 37 pivotally connected, as at 38, to the link 32. The lever 37 is suitably supported for oscillatory movement on a shaft 39, and the cam 34 is keyed to a shaft 40 which is driven in timed relation to the rest of the machine so as to raise the cradles at predetermined intervals. The follower 35 is shown in the dwell part of the cam groove. This dwell is made long enough to give the cutters 7 an opportunity to cut the gains at opposite ends of a tie in the feeding of the tie past the cutters by the conveyors 5.

The manual adjustment which will now be described is for changing the length of the connection between the yoke 31 and lever 37 where map... 7

by to accordingly advance or retract the arms 29 relative to the cradle lifting arms 15-15 at both sides of the machine. In other words, one adjustment sumces for both cradles and the same change is made in the depth of cut at both ends of the tie. The adjustment is in the means 33 which pivotally connects the link with the yoke 31. Means 33 comprises a bearing member 41 supported on horizontal trunnions received in bearings 42 on the yoke 31.

A sleeve 43 is rotatably mounted in the bearing member 41 and has the threaded reduced end 451 of the link 32 threaded therein, as at 45. The sleeve 43 has worm teeth 46 provided thereon in an enlarged portion intermediate the ends of the sleeve and received in a counter-bore 47 provided inthe bearing 41. A plate 48 fastened on the end of the bearing closes the counterbore and holds the sleeve 43 against endwise movement relative to the bearing. Now, it will be evident that if the sleeve 43' is turned relative to the link 32 the link connection between the yoke 31 and arm 37 may be lengthened or shortened, depending on which direction the sleeve is turned. The worm teeth 46 is the means utilized for turning the sleeve, and a worm gear 49' meshes with the worm teeth 46 and is arranged to be turned by means of a hand wheel 50 supported on the frame of the machine. The worm gear 49 is disposed at right angles to the axis of the sleeve 43 between a pair of ears 51 projecting upwardly from the'bearing member 41 and serving as bearings for the reduced shank portion of the universal joint yoke 52 on which the worm gear 49 is keyed or otherwise suitably fixed. The universal joint yoke cooperating with the yoke 52 has the end of a shaft 5a fixed thereto and extending toward the hand wheel 50. The remote end of the shaft is splined, as indicated at 55, in an elongated yoke 56 of a sec ond universal joint, whose other yoke 5'7 has a reduced shank received in a bearing 58 on the frame of the machine for rotation by the hand wheel 50, suitably fixed on the projecting end of the shank. A Worm 59 is suitably provided on the reduced shank of the yoke 57 meshing with a worm gear 60 mounted on a stub shaft 61. The latter is suitably received in a projecting portion of the bearing 58, as shown, which has a pointer 62 to cooperate with a scale pro- 7 vided on the side of the worm gear 60, so as to indicate the extent of adjustment in fractions of an inch.

In operation, the operator can at any time turn the hand wheel'50 to change the depth of gainsbeing cut, without stopping the machine. The yoke 31 is free to oscillate without in any way affecting the manual adjustment. In practice, so long as the operator is adzing ties of the sawed or slabbed variety there will seldom be any-occasion for adjusting the machine for a change in the depth of gains, but he would un-.

doubtedly find an occasion for adjustment in running through a number of hewn ties which areinvariably much more irregular than ties of the other kinds mentioned. The'depth of gains can be changed to precisely what is desired irrespective of the degree of irregularity.

It is believed the foregoing description conveys a good understanding of my invention. The 1 appended claims have been drawn with a view to covering all legitimate modifications and adaptations.

I I claim:

- 1. In atie adzer, the combination of a cutter, 7

a pivotally mounted stock support adapted to be tilted on its pivot by the stock according to the shape thereof, mechanism for lifting the stock support, said mechanism including means for automatically changing the operating relationship between said support and said mechanism to vary the amount the support is lifted in a given movement of said mechanism, said mechanism also including oscillating means swingable through a certain angularity to lift the stock support more or less according to the position of the last mentioned means, a power-operated device ior communicating oscillatory movement to said oscillating means, a link connection between said device and said oscillating means for operating the latter, and manually adjustable means for shortening or lengthening the link connection whereby to accordingly advance or retract the oscillating means relative to the stock support and accordingly increase or decrease the height to which said support is lifted.

2. A. machine as set forth in claim 1, including means operable with said manually adjustable means for indicating the change in depth of cut resulting from a given operation of said means.

3. In a tie ao'izer, the combination of a cutter, a pivotally mounted stock support adapted to be ed on its pivot by the stock according to the through a certain angularity to lift the stock support more or less according to the position of the last mentioned means, a power-operated device for communicating oscillatory movement oscillating means, a link connection bet.-.ee'i device and oscillating means for operating the latter, an adjustable threaded connection between one end of said link and said 05 Eating means, including a rotatable element arranged when turned to shorten or lengthen tl e link connection, a manually rotatable gear element for turning the rotatable element, and In lually operable means for rotating the gear element, including a stationary support, manually rotatable shaft, and oscillating means providing ,"connection between said shaft and said gea element.

4:. In a tie adzing machine, the combination of a cutter, means for conveying ties in succession past said cutter, a supporting cradle pivotally mounted intermediate the ends of the cutter and having a member disposed at each end of the cutter upon which the tie to be adzed is supported, an intermittently operated lifting member, connections between said member and said cradle controlled by the tilting of said cradle, whereby said cradle is elevated from said member amount determined by the extent of tilting of said cradle, power-operated means for intermittently operating the lifting member through a certain movement, and means providing an operating connection between said poweroperated means and said lifting member, in-

cluding a manually adjustable connection for advancing or retracting the lifting member relative to the cradle and accordingly to further regulate the elevation of the cradle.

5. In a tie adzing machine, the combination of a cutter, a conveyor for moving ties past said cutter, a tie supporting cradle mounted upon a horizontal pivot intermediate the ends of the cutter and adapted to support a tie adjacent to each end of the cutter, a plunger projecting downwardly from said pivot for lifting the cradle, an intermittently operated lifting device disposed beneath the lower end of said plunger, an arm projecting downwardly from the cradle arranged to be oscillated in the tilting of the cradle on its pivot, a slidable height gauging block disposed between tl e lower end of said plunger and the aforesaid lifting device serving to determine by its position the height to which said cradle will be lifted in a given movement of said device, and means providing an operating connection between said block and said arm whereby to slide the former in the oscillation of the latter.

6. In a tie adzing machine, the combination of a cutter, a conveyor for moving ties past said cutter, a tie supporting cradle mounted upon a horizontal pivot intermediate the ends of the cutter and adapted to support a tie adjacent to each end of the cutter, a plunger projecting downwardly from said pivot for lifting the cradle, an intermittently operated lifting device disposed beneath the lower end of said plunger, an arm projecting downwardly from the cradle arranged to be oscillated in the tilting of the cradle on it: pivot, a second arm mounted for oscillation between the lower end of the plunger and the lifting device, a height gauge block slidable along said second arm and serving to determine by its position the height to which said cradle will be lifted in a given movement of said lifting device, and means providing an operating connection between said block and said first arm whereby to slide the former in the oscillation of the latter.

7. A structure as set forth in claim 6 including adjustable stop means for limiting the retracting movement of the second arm whereby to accordingly predetermine the elevation of the cradle in its lowered position.

8. In a tie adzer, the combination of a cutter, a pivotally mounted stock support adapted to be tilted on its pivot by the stock according to the shape thereof, mechanism for lifting the stock support, said mechanism including means for automatically changing the operating relation ship between said support and said mechanism to vary the amount the support is lifted in a given movement of said mechanism, power operated means for communicating movement to said lifting mechanism always through the same amplitude, and a manually adjustable connection between said lifting mechanism and said power operated means to vary the effective portion of the movement of said lifting mechanism relative to said stock support and accordingly change the depth of the cut made by the cutter.

JUDSON H. MANSFIELD. 

